082814-MeouetSamiErzedbet
CLL: oka CLL: TC, Erzedbret sprite is with you in libby's library CLL: for reasons CLL: AA, you must approach CLL: WITH CAUTION CLL: lol CAA: All right. CAA: I forget--Sami does know Meouet has prototyped Erzedbet, right? I seem to recall meeting Erzedbetsprite once, but I can't remember for certain if it was IC. CLL: yes. you'd know just in passing because Arktime CAA: Okay. CAA: Sami walks past the door into the library twice, as though looking for something. On the third time past, she sees that Meouet is there. CAA: "Meouet! Hi!" CAA: She approaches. CTC: Meouet turns from Erzedbet and sees Sami. CAA: "I'm doing some research that I think Erzedbet could help me with, if you two don't mind talking to me about it for a bit." CTC: "I was noṭ awarė our sṭudy sėssion ėxṭėndėd ḃėyond lėarning ṭwink." CAA: "Yours and mine doesn't usually. So you don't have to help if you don't want to. But it would really help me out if you did." CLL: Erzedbetsprite glares across the table. CAA: "I'm trying to make sure I'm prepared before I try to solve the problems on LOGAT, so I'm making sure I learn as much as I can before I go there." CTC: "Whaṭ arė your ṭhoughṭs, Erzėdḃėṭ?" CAA: "You know....thinking ahead, instead of just going in guns blazing, like I usually do." CTC: Meouet nods. CLL: "I don't expect you know much of anything, Sami." She comments drily, turning another page in her book. "I know you've been reading my books." CAA: "Yeah....there wasn't much in there about the guy I was looking up." CAA: "That's why I was curious if you knew anything else that didn't make it in there." CLL: "Who were you looking up?" CAA: "Cocytus. It said he was a Lord of Breath, and there was a picture of a guy who looked pretty normal....but it was in 'The History of the Horrorterrors.' And the legend said he was a Horrorterror who turned himself into a river." CAA: "I found this river on LOGAT that had this really spooky feel to it....I think maybe it was him, if the legend was true? I would've taken a sample, but if it really WAS him, I was worried it might upset him to steal part of him." CLL: "That about sums it up." Erzedbet turns another page. CLL: "Did you bother to ask?" CAA: "Ask the river?" CAA: "No....there are legends there that if he wakes up, it'll bring about an apocalypse. So I didn't want to risk waking him up without knowing what I was getting myself into." CLL: "Exactly." She looks up at Meouet. "Are all humans this stupid?" CTC: Mėouėṭ shrugs. CLL: "Nothing ventured, nothing gained, Sami." CTC: "My sampling of ṭhėm has ḃėėn limiṭėd ṭo ṭhosė who survivėd. I cannoṭ say for surė." CLL: "What does your sample say, then?" Erzedbet tilts her head. "They are, after all, the only humans left." CAA: "I've gotten myself in trouble thinking that way in the past. It's sort of a sore subject with Meouet, actually, I think." Sami bows her head in a "tails between her legs" gesture and looks at Meouet. CTC: "I wanṭ ṭo ḃė lėniėnṭ and say ṭhaṭ ṭhėir homė world was jusṭ... ḃuild ṭo caṭėr ṭo ṭhėir spėciės. Ṭhėy don'ṭ know much ḃėṭṭėr." CTC: built* CAA: Sami's starting to feel a little irritated, but bites it back. She is asking for a favor, after all. CLL: "So, what exactly do you want? The Cocytus I knew was many millenia ago. And he was the Oracle's lover, not mine." CAA: "I *am* working on knowing better, y'know....that's what I'm trying to--" Sami blinks. "Libby's?" CTC: "If anyṭhing, Sami and Kaṭė arė proḃaḃly ṭhė ḃėsṭ ėquippėd of ṭhė humans hėrė, Ėrzėdḃėṭ." CLL: Erzedbet nods. "I wasn't aware that I stuttered. I had thought my diction much better than that." CTC: Meouet turns her attention to the notebook she was writing in. CAA: "Well I don't know, maybe there were other Oracles before Libby. If I'm her Understudy, it DOES imply the position can be passed on. Maybe there were others before her." CAA: "So then am I understanding this right? He was a player, then he was a horrorterror?" CLL: "As far as I am aware, Libby is the First. Or at least, the longest running." CLL: "In a sense. It is hard to explain, and the line between has many shades of grey." CAA: "Does that happen often?" CAA: "Players becoming Horrorterrors?" CLL: "I'm not sure." CAA: "Hmm. Well, aside from that, I don't suppose you remember anything about like....his personality, or his goals or anything, right?" CLL: "My memories are not well recorded. I've written many books I don't remember writing. From what I understand, I am not the first iteration of the Oracle's Handmaiden." CTC: The lead breaks in Meouet's pencil. She sighs and sets it down for a moment, letting herself cool down a bit. CAA: "Oh....is it like the thing with Scarlet or the Herald?" CLL: "It's irrelevant." CAA: "It'll be relevant if it means you don't remember anything about Cocytus that wasn't in your book." CLL: "Cocytus was a proud, vain individual. His Land, the Land of Sorrow and Slavery, humbled him." CLL: "His session was a void session, in capable of breeding Bilious Slick." CLL: "He achieved god-tier, but Jack slew his muse." CLL: "So Libby took him in." CLL: "Then I went to sleep." CAA: "Yeah, the book said something about it being a void session." CLL: "When I awoke again, Cocytus was gone." CAA: "Huh. So I guess the only one who would know anything about how and why he became a river would be Libby herself." CAA: "Or Cocytus." CTC: "Iṭ is my undėrsṭanding ṭhaṭ you wėrėn'ṭ inṭėrėsṭėd in spėaking wiṭh hėr much?" CAA: "...well, kinda. I've made an ass of myself in front of her about a dozen times already asking her for favors." CAA: "If I had something to trade her for the information I was asking for, it wouldn't be so bad. But I just don't want to ask her for anymore favors." CTC: "I wondėr how wėll wė would havė farėd had ṭhė Oraclė noṭ ṭakėn piṭy on our sėssion and inṭėrvėnėd." CAA: "I don't know. Maybe we would've learned to stand on our own two feet better. Or maybe we would've all gotten killed by Jack in the first week." Sami shrugs. CAA: "Our session's had interference from the beginning, both helpful and harmful. It's tough to tell where it would've gone without interference of any kind." CAA: "Well, I mean, it's tough for me. But I'm not a Seer. I don't know what you can see about it." CLL: Erzedbet glances meaningfully at Meouet. CTC: Meouet bites her lip. CTC: "I'm afraid duė ṭo ṭhė way I godṭiėrėd, I am noṭ as advancėd in ṭhėsė ṭhings as onė would ėxpėcṭ." CTC: She turns back to a book nervously. CAA: "It's okay. I wasn't necessarily asking for a reading." She smiles. CAA: "But, since you're so good at the common sense stuff....do you think Erzedbet was right before? Should I just like....talk to the river and see what happens? Instead of dallying around here trying to be prepared for whatever it might throw at me?" CAA: "I'm not asking you as a Seer. Just as a sensible teammate." CTC: "You would raṭhėr ask mė for clarificaṭion whėn Ėrzėdḃėṭ is righṭ hėrė?" CAA: "Not clarification. Consensus." CAA: She nods to Erzedbet with a smile. CLL: Erzedbet nods back, her lips pressed into a thin line. CTC: "Wėll, considėring ṭhė dėal you madė, I ḃėliėvė you can proḃaḃly jusṭify somė risk ḃėhavior aṭ ṭhis poinṭ. Ṭhough is iṭ rėally worṭh your lifė for an answėr?" CAA: Sami sighs. "...I don't know. Those birds might be in danger. But I think I need to try to survive, so that Beau's death fighting Jack wasn't for nothing. She was fighting for the good of all of us, so I can't let her down by dying pointlessly." CAA: "And....I don't know. If he's actually part of my world, like designed for me to deal with, and not some sort of corruption in the game....I feel like the game wouldn't put an unwinnable scenario in front of me there. There's got to be a way to solve this problem. CAA: "...not that it won't shithammer me if I give it the chance." She sighs. CTC: "Ṭhaṭ's naivė ṭhinking, Sami. How many ṭėammaṭės havė wė losṭ? Ṭhėrė is no largėr gray arėa ṭhan ḃėṭwėėn winning and noṭ winning." CAA: "Most of our teammates weren't lost to the game itself. They were lost to Jack." CAA: "But maybe you're right. The universe isn't very forgiving, so why should the game be?" CAA: "You think I should just give up then? Leave LOGAT to whatever fate has in store for it?" CTC: Meouet sighs and closes her eyes for a moment of quiet, clasping her hands together. CTC: "I ṭhink you'rė rėally going ṭo havė ṭo considėr your acṭions. I sėė ṭhaṭ ṭhėy arė ṭhė dėciding facṭor in your survival." CAA: "That tends to be true regardless of the situation, doesn't it?" Sami gives a wry chuckle. CTC: "If ṭhė informaṭion is imporṭanṭ and ṭhė ḃirds arė imporṭanṭ, find ṭhė lėasṭ aḃrasivė way ṭo go aḃouṭ iṭ. Don'ṭ gėṭ upsėṭ if Bėau's dėaṭh is mėnṭionėd. Rėmėmḃėr whaṭ Ėrzėdḃėṭ said aḃouṭ his land humḃling him. And ṭhink on whaṭ could causė a playėr ṭo succumḃ ṭo ṭhė horrorṭėrrors. Surėly you havė an inkling." CTC: "I know lėss ṭhan all of you on ṭhis, why arė you asking mė anyway?" CTC: She uncaptchalogues another pencil and starts making notes in the margin of her notebook. CAA: Sami shrugs. "Because you have more common sense than any of us. Besides, I've been bummed about the fact that we used to be kinda good friends I thought and lately I've lost your respect." CAA: "So I'd kind of like to win that back if I can." CTC: "Noḃody asks a ṭool whėṭhėr iṭ minds ḃėing usėd, ṭhėy jusṭ wanṭ ṭo know iṭ sėrvės iṭs purposė propėrly. I'm a Sėėr. Iṭ doėsn'ṭ maṭṭėr if I *likė* any of you. Jusṭ ṭhaṭ I do my joḃ." CTC: "Go ṭalk ṭo your horrorṭėror friėnd." CAA: "I don't want you to think of yourself as a tool, Meouet! And I don't want you to only work with us because you're stuck with us." CLL: "Yet that seems to be your attitude towards the Oracle." CAA: "I tried being her friend too. I see now that I was doing it wrong. But I think that bridge is well and truly burned." CAA: "So now I'm just trying to respect her by giving her a wide berth so she doesn't have to put up with me." CLL: "Bridges with the Oracle are never burned. They may need major repairs, but never burned." CTC: "Pėrhaps whėn you ṭry ṭo ḃėfriėnd Cocyṭus, you should do somėṭhing ṭhaṭ ḃėnėfiṭs him in a way ṭhaṭ hė also agrėės ḃėnėfiṭs him. Noṭ jusṭ ṭo furṭhėr your agėnda. Noṭ jusṭ ḃėcausė iṭ's whaṭ you pėrsonally ḃėliėvė is righṭ. Noṭ all culṭurė is human culṭurė. Ṭhėrė arė diffėrėncės ṭhaṭ may nėėd ṭo ḃė rėspėcṭėd." << everyone disconnects! >> CTC: (( i remember why i turned this quirk off.... )) CAA: Sami looks abashed. "Okay." CAA: "...have I been doing that to you, too, Meouet?" CTC: "It was very nice to meet everyone at first, though I was incredibly used to the solitary time on Alternia. Past that, nearly complete isolation with only Libby and Erzedbet to speak with. It was comfortable. Then I met everyone. In a constant social struggle for each other's loins, avoiding the game's plot entirely." CTC: "But it doesn't end there!" CTC: "No, once someone shows any capability of being slightly logical, they are instantly the tactitian. The consultant." CLL: Erzedbet glances out of the corner of her eye, and takes a long sip of lipton. CAA: Sami hangs her head. "I'm sorry. I just assumed it would make you feel good to be part of the team, and to have us ask for your opinions on things. I didn't realize you would think it meant that we just wanted to use you for your brain." CLL: "You'll have to forgive my player. She and I spent too much time watching how you treated the Oracle." CAA: "Do you want me to just leave you alone, then? Like I'm doing with Libby?" Sami sounds sad. CTC: "If I was part of the team, none of what happened on LOLWAT would have happened. If I was part of the team, perhaps someone would have seen past a few things." CTC: "But as we are just reference material? Not unlike a book... it makes sense that people wouldn't read between the lines of our pages." CLL: "Very rarely do people check the sources or read footnotes, Meouet. This lot takes things at face value." CAA: Sami sighs. "And here I thought I was getting better. I'm sorry, Meouet. And I....I don't think I've ever really talked to you enough to do you like this, Erzedbet, but I guess I'm sorry to you too, for having to watch all this." CLL: "I've seen worse." Erzedbet's attention is back on her book. CAA: "Maybe I shouldn't go back to LOGAT after all. If I'm still this bad, I'll probably just fuck everything up with Cocytus." CTC: Meouet shakes her head. CLL: "Or maybe Cocytus will set you straight. He's quite the charmer." CTC: "Still not sure what a man could teach anyone..." Meouet grumbles under her breath. CAA: "Or maybe he'll get so pissed at me he'll kill all the birds for no reason. It's just too much responsibility to put in the hands of a stupid fourteen year old." CLL: "Cocytus is only a man because he was at that stage in his lifecycle when he died. His race became female once they achieved a certain age, and level of wisdom." CTC: Meouet perks up a bit, scribbling another note. CAA: "They already think I'm going to bring about the apocalypse. Maybe they're right." CLL: "So what, then, Sami? Will you just sit back and let everyone else risk their lives and happiness? Or will you stay in the furthest ring with the Oracle forever?" CLL: "Spend an eternity answering questions for ungrateful players? CAA: "I don't know! What am I supposed to do?! If I act, I make things worse, and if I don't act I can't help people who need me!" CAA: "Maybe answering questions for ungrateful players would be better than actively making things worse." CTC: "You give up so easy with a bit of criticism... " CLL: "Grow up. Be decisive. I'm sure the Colonel would be -so proud-." CAA: "Well I mean you've seen the decisions I've made so far. Do you really feel comfortable putting people's lives in my hands based on my history so far?" CTC: "So you want someone else to blame? If you messed this up, would it be our fault for bad advice?" CLL: Erzedbetsprite takes another sip of her tea. CAA: "No. I'm not blaming anyone. I'm just saying it's too much for me. I'm not up to this. I was never meant to be a hero. I think the game only let me in because I was friends with the people who were." CAA: "And now I've lost or pushed most of those people away, too." CLL: "You're a witch. That's an active class. Act like it." CTC: "Our worlds are supposed to challenge us to grow. We are all heroes. But we can choose to fall short of what we're meant to do." CLL: "Where do you think most of the horrorterrors came from, Sami?" CAA: "Where's that? I thought when I saw Cocytus was a player, maybe it was players, but you said you weren't sure how often that happens." CLL: "I don't know much... but... CLL: Would you like to go to the Rookery?" CAA: "Last time I went there, I got tempted into making a bargain that resulted in Jack wandering the Ark." Sami sighs. "Yet another brilliant move by the Witch of Breath." CLL: "That's the dome. Not the rookery." CAA: "Oh. What's the Rookery?" CLL: Erzedbet stands, and beckons. "I'll show you." CLL: "Meouet... whatever you do, leave your glasses off while we're there, all right?" CTC: Meouet mouths something like "oh no, we forgot to draw maps for everyone" and rolls her eyes. CTC: "I'd not intended to bring them." She captchalogues them. CAA: Sami follows, a little sullen still. CLL: "excellent. This way, ladies." She heads for a larger bookcase." CLL: Erzedbet pulls on a book,a nd the bookcase opens, revealing a thin shaft with a metal ladder. "After you." CAA: Sami takes a breath, then takes the ladder. CLL: Erzedbet floats down the tube, motioning for meouet to follow. CTC: Meouet follows. CLL: Sami, The ladder ends on top of a trap door, with a ladder extension in it. Erzedbet motions to a handle. "Could you, dear?" CAA: Sami opens the trap door and continues onward. CLL: The trapdoor extends to a tile floor. Around you, large black tentacled horrors are trapped in glass cages, twink writing carved into the glass. CLL: They thrash against their bindings, clacking and wailing. CLL: Erzedbet follows, surveying the group. "Need a hand, Meouet?" She calls. CAA: "They're....trapped in here?" CLL: "Not quite." CTC: "No..." Meouet enters the Rookery with a few taps of her boots. Not a great dismount. CLL: The trap door collapses again, vanishing into the ceiling. CLL: "So, Sami. What do you see?" CAA: Sami looks around, examining the horrors and the writing especially. CTC: Meouet grabs her own arm reflexively. CLL: The Writing is advanced twink. CLL: You can make up some words relating to healing, calm, and sedation. CAA: "Are they....are they patients? Or like....are they being RAISED here?" CAA: "Are these like baby horrorterrors?" CTC: Meouet uncaptchalogues a tissue. CLL: Erzedbet laughs. "No." CLL: "Would you like to see them like the Oracle does? Maybe understand what she's being -trying- to save you lot from?" CTC: Meouet pinches her nose. CAA: "..." Sami takes a deep breath. "...okay." CLL: Erzedbet pulls a bandage out of her pocket, soaked with red blood. "Wear this." CLL: ((btw sami, if you survive this, ------ )) CAA: (( "If I survive this?" Holy crap. )) CTC: (( she had a choice. )) CAA: Sami puts on the bandage. CLL: It takes a few minutes for your vision to return. First little pinpricks of light through the cloth, growing brighter and brighter until your vision resolves. The tile and glass appears miles away, save the writing on the glass, which shines brightly, prayers and litanies for lost souls. Inside each cage is a player of some alien race, screaming in madness, begging for help, trying to claw imaginary creatures off their skin, trying to kill themselves, or any number of other acts of madness. They are all god tier." CAA: "Oh god....what's wrong with them?! Why are they like this?!" CLL: "You are aware that god tier players cannot die, unless their death would be heroic or just. What do you think happens to those whose sessions fail?" CLL: ((Btw Sami, what's your will)) CTC: Meouet's tissue has turned nearly olive, and she replaces it with a fresh one. CAA: "...I wasn't sure what the rules were, for how god tiers died and stayed dead. I just figured if their universe died, they wouldn't survive it..." CAA: (( +4 )) CLL: ((okay. give yourself a temporary aspect "Haunted". These screams and cries and the madness are going to stick with you for a while, filling your nightmares)) CAA: (( All right. Not like it'll be the first time she's dealt with Nightmares. =P )) CLL: "Well, now you know. This is the fate that awaits you, if your session doesn't succeed." CLL: Libby sends them to the rookery, until the madness passes." CAA: "...holy shit." CTC: "Why isn't it called the incubation bay, then?" CTC: "Or the sedation unit?" CLL: Erzedbet grins. "It's the rookery, because it's where you go when you're a'ravin'." CAA: "...was that a joke, Erzedbet?" Sami sounds surprised. CTC: Meouet facepalms and gets a bit of her nosebleed on her hand. She scramble to clean it, uncaptchaloguing a few crickets on accident. CTC: Meouet spends time catching crickets! CLL: "Maybe. Are you ready to go upstairs?" CAA: "I guess. Are these guys....are they going to be okay?" CTC: Meouet grabs the last cricket and sighs, "Are any of us *really* okay?" CAA: "No. No I guess we're not." CAA: She sighs. CAA: Sami allows herself to be lead back upstairs. CLL: Erzedbet drops you both off in the Library, resetting the bookshelf. "I'm going to go check in on the Oracle. Do you need anything before I go?" CTC: Meouet shakes her head. CLL: "Sami?" CAA: "No, I guess not. I'm still not really sure what I should do. But that's not your problem, it's mine." She sighs. CLL: "Indeed. I'll see you ladies later." CTC: Meouet waves to her sprite and sits back down at her table to take notes. CAA: Sami leans at the edge of the table for a moment. CAA: "Is there anything I can do to make things right between us, Meouet?" CAA: "Or do you just want me to leave you alone?" CTC: "... I do not know right now. But you have been given so many hints this discussion. Erzedbet showed that you you intentionally. There is something you must have gained out of it that will help you." CAA: "Yeah. It gives me a place to start from in talking to Cocytus. It lets me know that somewhere in side there, he's probably still a person....though he might've gone mad or something." CAA: "And he's probably in pain." CAA: "So maybe I should talk to him just so he has someone to vent to. I don't know." CTC: Meouet scribbles more notes. CAA: "But after everything you guys said, I still feel like I'm probably just going to fuck things up even more than they already are." CAA: "I'm probably going to end up single-handedly dooming this session, and everyone but me and Seriad is going to turn into a horrorterror because of it. And I don't know how to stop it." CTC: "You're taking all of this and applying it to yourself. Which is one way to deal with it. But right now, to me, it looks like because you don't have a clear cut path to the victory you think you want, you are pessimistic. Instead of thinking the game is programmed to help you some other way than laying down a golden brick path and neon signs." CTC: "Why not seriad?" CAA: "Because she and I aren't god tier. We're the only ones." CAA: "If the universe ends, the two of us die." CAA: She shrugs. CTC: "As I understand it, the universe doesn't enjoy those who cheat. Everyone chose their fate." CAA: "Hmm. It certainly didn't seem to have a problem with Jack for something that doesn't enjoy cheaters." CTC: She takes notes in Alternian. CTC: "Just speculating. The Twinks have been around so long it may have thought he was part of the original code." CAA: "But just a while ago you were saying I was being naive by thinking there would be a path to victory. Now you're saying I'm being pessimistic by assuming there isn't one?" CTC: "I am trying to get across that there isn't a walkthrough, and that you become discouraged when nobody is able to hand it to you." CTC: "You were the one asking US what WE would have you do. As if we have that authority." CAA: "No, I think I became discouraged when two people teamed up to tell me how awful I've been up till now." Sami's tone is level, but there's a little anger beneath the surface. CTC: "So you learned nothing." CTC: "Alright." CAA: "I've learned stuff!" CTC: Meouet lifts a few books next to her and slides one in the middle out to flip through the pages. CTC: "Then apply it." CAA: "Fine." Sami turns to walk off, looking a little annoyed still. But as she gets to the door, she sighs, and turns back. "Thank you for your time, Meouet. And I'm sorry if I've been an asshole to you all this time. It really wasn't my intention." CTC: "You're misunderstanding a lot, still. Talk to you later." CAA: "Yeah, it seems to be my specialty. Later." CAA: With that, she departs.